Here you will find an exact description of the individual steps in stem cell donation.
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Stem cell donation
Should you decide to become a stem cell donor, there will be a series of steps before you actually donate the cells.
Every donor will not have to take each of these steps. Our experience is that not more than five in a hundred (5%) of potential stem cell donors actually donate stem cells within a period of ten years. The chance that a young and fully typed donor will donate stem cells within the first year of typing is about 1%.
Step 1: Registration and blood sampling
Should you decide to become a stem cell donor, there will be a series of steps before you actually donate the cells.
Every donor will not have to take each of these steps. Our experience is that not more than five in a hundred (5%) of potential stem cell donors actually donate stem cells within a period of ten years. The chance that a young and fully typed donor will donate stem cells within the first year of typing is about 1%.
There are four different possible ways of registering in the DKMS Deutsche Knochenmarkspenderdatei (German Bone Marrow Donor Center):
a) You can be a postal donor. This means that you order the registration set and the informed consent form online or on the telephone.
b) You register during a drive organized by an initiative group. Our event calendar lists city drives in your area.
c) Your company carries out a company drive. We would be glad to send you information about company drives of this sort.
d) You have yourself registered at one of our permanent institutions.
Step 2: Analysis of tissue characteristics
After registration, your blood will be tested in a special laboratory for at least four of six specific tissue characteristics (HLA-A, -B typing). Once we have these data, you are a potential donor of the DKMS.
A stem cell transplantation can only be performed and will only be successful if the tissue characteristics of the patient and donor match almost completely .
Step 3: Inclusion in the central register
The tissue characteristics and the donor number are transmitted in an anonymous form to the ZKRD (German Central Bone Marrow Donor Register) in Ulm and are available there for enquiries from patients anywhere in the world.
Step 4: Additional Tests
If there is match between a patient and donors for the initial HLA typings, additional tissue typing is performed for these donors. This is known as HLA-DR typing.
If it turns out that you are to be considered as stem cell donor for a patient because of your tissue characteristics, you will be given a detailed health questionnaire, so that possible exclusion criteria can be recognised in good time. This is then followed by confirmation typing (CT), in which your blood sample is compared with that of the patient again in more detail. In addition, your blood will be tested for specific pathogens, such as HIV or hepatitis viruses. On the basis of this result, it will be decided whether you are a suitable donor and are qualified possibly to become a hero.
Step 5: Final decision
If the confirmation typing shows that you really are the patient's sought for "genetic twin", then the time has come for you to make a final decision as to whether you are available for the patient. You will be given a thorough health check-up by a physician and provided with full information. You will then sign a consent form for the donation. Preparation of the patient starts about one week before the date planned for the transplantation. This involves destruction of the patient's diseased bone marrow or possibly radiation. From this point in time, the patient is incapable of surviving without subsequently receiving healthy stem cells from the donor.
